These Cheesy Lemon Pancakes Are the Easiest Way to Convince People You Can Cook

Lemon and ricotta go together in pancake recipes like two peas in a pod, but ricotta is difficult to use during Passover, as most brands use a grain-based vinegar in production. For this reason, we developed a lemon pancake recipe using cottage cheese instead, which makes a very tasty and traditional substitute. If you make the recipe outside the holiday and don’t care about the vinegar, store-bought ricotta is just fine.

Directions

In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, egg yolks, sugar, lemon zest and juice, and salt. In a medium bowl, sift together the cake meal, potato starch, and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, using a rubber spatula to mix until just combined. Take care not to over mix or the pancakes will be tough.

Using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or a whisk and a large bowl, whip the egg whites until soft peaks form. They should look like soft-serve ice cream. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold one-third of the egg whites at a time into the batter until well incorporated, taking care not to overfold. Gently fold in the cheese—the batter should be streaky with visible lumps of cheese curds throughout.

Melt 1 to 2 tablespoons butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add ¼ cup of the batter for each pancake, working in batches if needed. Cook the pancakes until the edges are golden brown and bubbles begin to form on top, about 5 minutes. Flip and cook until the second side is golden, another 2 minutes. Serve with confectioners’ sugar, fresh fruit, maple syrup, or your favorite pancake topper.